The Women Left Behind by Gambling Addiction

Lorraine and Claire

For many families, gambling harm is something that happens quietly behind closed doors. 

The financial stress, secrecy and emotional strain often affect far more than the person placing the bets, and new figures suggest millions of people across Britain may be living with the fallout.

According to Public Health England, around 1.5 to 2 million adults in Britain may be directly affected by someone else’s gambling. 

Women are disproportionately represented among those seeking support, yet many suffer in silence for years before reaching out for help.

One of those women was Lorraine Perrons.

The mother-of-two says her world changed after returning home from a family holiday to discover her husband’s hidden gambling addiction had pushed the family to the brink of financial collapse.

During the trip, Lorraine had noticed her husband repeatedly betting during race nights, but she didn't realise the scale of the problem until she walked through the front door at home.

“What I found completely changed my life,” she says. “When I confronted him, he eventually looked at me and said, ‘I think I’ve got a gambling problem.’”

At the same time as dealing with mounting debts and uncertainty, Lorraine was also preparing to lose her terminally ill father, who died just four months later.

She describes the years that followed as “survival mode” trying to protect her children while coping with grief, exhaustion and ongoing financial instability. Following the eventual separation, she endured a difficult divorce and emergency court hearings linked to mortgages and finances repeatedly breaking down.

“I realised later that I’d spent years living like a shell of myself,” Lorraine says.

Much later, she was diagnosed with Complex PTSD.

Her experiences eventually led her into therapeutic work supporting both gamblers and the loved ones affected by gambling harm. Alongside fellow therapist Claire Jones, she co-founded Gambling Recovery Therapy and Gambling Recovery for All CIC.

Together, the pair have launched a free 12-week online programme called Rebuild and Rise: Reclaim Your Life, designed specifically for women affected by someone else’s gambling.

The trauma-informed course combines emotional support, practical coping strategies, hypnotherapy, psychoeducation and peer support to help women rebuild confidence and emotional wellbeing.

“We wanted to create something genuinely trauma-informed,” says Claire. “Not just advice, but a safe space where women feel understood.”

The first online group begins on 9 June 2026, with funded places available for eligible applicants.

Women interested in applying can do so here:

Rebuild and Rise Application Form https://forms.gle/aMA4fJbgDMSpgoTb9

http://www.gamblingrecoverytherapy.com

Hestia aims to reach 5,000 Safe Spaces by end of year – as someone seeks refuge in a bank or pharmacy every day

Crisis support charity, Hestia has today called for more community-based organisations to join its Safe Spaces scheme to reach 5,000 locations by the end of the year, as the charity and TSB find over two thirds (68%) of polling respondents are unaware of domestic abuse help available on the high street.

Currently, there are 4,283 Safe Spaces across the UK, with pharmacies accounting for 60% of the network and banks 40%.

Safe Spaces provide secure and discreet refuge for those seeking to escape an abuser and access support and signposting. 

Locations across the UK are in addition to Safe Spaces online, which ensure people can find services discreetly if they are unable to visit a physical location.

Hestia data shows someone accessed a Safe Space in a pharmacy or bank every day last year. Accompanying polling by Hestia and TSB polling shows almost a third (28%) of respondents know someone who has sought help related to domestic abuse. 

A quarter of women (25%) and almost a fifth (19%) of men reported having experienced domestic or economic abuse. Official figures from the ONS reveal that approximately one in four (25.8%) people experience domestic abuse in their lifetime,

During No More Week, Hestia, backed by participating pharmacies and banks is raising awareness of this vital schem, as the charity and TSB finds over nine in 10 (92%) are unaware that some banks offer Safe Spaces, and almost four fifths (79%) are unaware that some pharmacies offer the scheme. And almost six in 10 (57%) had not heard of Safe Spaces at all.

Domestic abuse can lead to serious physical and mental harm, and in the worst cases, loss of life.

Of those (22%) who had experienced abuse – three quarters (76%) said it had impacted them financially. Debt (52%), Lacking money confidence (36%), Poverty (33%), and Credit rating, (31%) were the most common issues faced.

The banks and pharmacies offering the scheme have specially trained colleagues able to provide victim-survivors with access to private spaces where they can make confidential phone calls to helplines, or friends and family members.

Patrick Ryan, Chief Executive, Hestia, told That's Health: "Safe Spaces is a powerful example of what can be achieved when the charity and business sector come together to find innovative solutions for societal problems. 

"We launched Safe Spaces during the pandemic, and it continues to grow and be used every day by people experiencing domestic abuse.

“The impact is life-changing, and in some cases lifesaving. We are hugely grateful to our many partners including TSB who are the backbone of this vital support on the high street, and we urge other community-based organisations to come forward and join the scheme to ensure we can reach everyone who needs us.”

Kate Osiadacz, Head of Responsible Business, TSB, said: “We’ve seen first-hand the life-changing impact that Safe Spaces in branch, and online can have, in helping people escape an abusive and dangerous situation.

“With an alarming rate of domestic and economic abuse across the UK, we would encourage all relevant businesses to use their resources to provide what can be vital refuge and routes to safety.”

https://www.hestia.org